Gillett and Hicks (ownership saga)

[hamstrung]

"How much do you need, fella's? Is cash OK? Ooooh look - there's me jet"

 

[coop]

Coop - The new stadium will be financed with guarantees of future earnings from naming rights and season ticket sales as is normally the case. I think that will be easier to finance than their 'debt' to buy the club.

 

Both owners have already been offered a loan to build the stadium a while since but could not afford it.

 

Allegedly.

 

If the stadium was so easy to build mate then why is it not now getting built.

 

The future earnings from naming rights and season ticket sales is applicable now and i can assure you if it was so easy to get the money to build the stadium both Hicks and Gillett would be doing it don't you worry because that is their big money spinner and would enable to ask for a lot more regards a sale of the club.

[ToxtethTerror]

They think they did he right thing with the Stadium delay, you only have to look at the steel prices in 2006 and the steel prices today, we stand to save about £100m on the cost of the stadium because of this.

[sh#t waffle]

They've saved even more by just not bothering to build it.

[ali]

They think they did he right thing with the Stadium delay, you only have to look at the steel prices in 2006 and the steel prices today, we stand to save about £100m on the cost of the stadium because of this.

 

That'll be the £100m they've already spent on it then.

 

 

 

Tony Barrett: Oceans apart - the fans who feel betrayed by Tom Hicks and George Gillett

 

Mar 28 2009 by Tony Barrett, Liverpool Echo

 

 

I NEVER like reading about Tom Hicks in the paper anymore,” wrote the sports fan to an online blog. “If I were him and hated as much by so many as he is, I wouldn't like to read about me either.”

 

The angry missive did not appear on an English website and it was not penned by a Liverpool fan, it was featured on the homepages of the Dallas Morning News and was sent in by a fan of the Texas Rangers, another “sports franchise” owned by Hicks.

 

No reason was given for the enmity, the author simply expected his views to be part of a consensus which would be understood by all those who follow the Rangers.

 

A blog written by one of the Morning News’ top sports writers gave one indication why there is so much disquiet about Hicks, having learned the Rangers owner is to cut $20m from the baseball outfit’s annual payroll.

 

“What would another $20 million do to the Texas Rangers payroll?” pondered blogger Jim Reeves.

 

“Wait a minute, don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not talking about adding another $20 million. I’m talking about subtracting it.

 

“According to multiple sources, and confirmed by the man himself, that’s exactly what Rangers owner Tom Hicks would like to do, not for this season but for 2010, and I can tell you what slicing another $20 million from his team’s already below-average payroll would do.

 

“It might just incite a riot among an already restless and frustrated Rangers fandom.”

 

At least Liverpool fans know that they are not alone.

 

Over in Montreal, the natives are similarly restless following George Gillett’s decision to engage in some “estate planning” which supporters of the much loved Canadiens ice hockey team fear could lead to the sale of one of sport’s most famous names.

 

Gillett is irritated by the fact that his financial pruning has become so public, insisting: “I am not used to this kind of attention, and this kind of impoliteness. I am really offended by it, because it really is truly private.”

 

Which is odd, because just 48 hours earlier Canadiens president and Gillett ally Pierre Bolvin had ignited media interest by issuing an official statement saying: “The Gillett family has retained the services of financial advisers in order to assess various strategic alternatives to optimise the value of its corporate assets."

 

So much for it being “truly private”.

 

But what are Liverpool fans to make of events Stateside?

 

Well this week, we have learned that as well as asking George W Bush to throw the opening pitch of the Rangers’ season, Hicks is looking for investment in his baseball team.

 

We also know that Gillett’s estate planning is likely to result in minority investors – or perhaps even outright buyers – taking a stake in one or more of his franchises.

 

In short, the duo are looking to cut costs and increase revenue and are doing it at exactly the same time. Anyone would think they have a major refinancing deadline to meet in just four months time.

 

As ever, it is their motives which remain unclear though. Are they looking down the back of their sofas for loose change in a bid to ensure they can convince the banks to continue with the massive £350m loan which allows them to be owners of Liverpool?

 

Or is it a public attempt to convince anyone looking to buy the Reds at a knockdown price, that they have the means to get through the refinancing process?

 

Both insist they are not interested in selling but both have instructed rival leading banks to seek out potential investment in Liverpool and it is widely believed that Merrill Lynch and Rothschilds have discussed a total sale of the club with more than one party.

 

Furthermore, it was less than a year ago that Hicks and Gillett came within two hours of selling Liverpool to the Al-Kharafi family only for the wealthy Kuwaitis to walk away from the negotiating table without any explanation.

 

This happened at a time when the American duo were similarly adamant that Liverpool was not for sale and the secrecy surrounding the proposed deal with the Al-Kharafis was so great that the talks took place without the knowledge of Reds chief executive Rick Parry, who denied any such negotiations were taking place.

 

The talks may have collapsed but a price had been agreed which suggests that Hicks and Gillett are willing to sell but, in the words of the late Leslie Crowther, only when the price is right.

 

It remains to be seen whether any of Liverpool’s potential suitors are willing to meet that price and unless they do it seems that Hicks and Gillett will be able to continue insisting that they won’t be selling.

 

But one thing’s for sure, newspaper buyers on both sides of the Atlantic had best get used to reading about Tom Hicks because the Texan is going to continue to be big news in the months to come.

 

Liverpool Echo.co.uk - Liverpool FC - News - Tony Barrett: Oceans apart - the fans who feel betrayed by Tom Hicks and George Gillett

[JohnnyH]

I'm really enjoying our recent run and the fact we have Man Utd and Ferguson nervous about is in a title race going into April, but the mention of those two wankers never ceases to get me all wound up and put our recent run of form into perspective.

[satmann]

Good read this. Shows again what a Cunt Gillete is...

 

http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=237090&sc=99

 

Habs owner at the root of team's problems print this article

JACK TODD

Canwest News Service

 

MONTREAL— Last Monday, it all became clear: The strange, panicky firing of Guy Carbonneau, less than a year after his Montreal Canadiens finished first in the Eastern Conference.

The failure of an NHL team that was obviously in need to acquire any significant help at the trade deadline.

The fact that general manager Bob Gainey will go into what is sure to be a difficult off-season with no fewer than 10 unsigned free agents.

Or the bizarre team chemistry, which seems to have been cooked up in a lab by a bright 10-year-old with an unlimited supply of nitroglycerine.

After my good friend Rejean Tremblay reported in Monday’s edition of La Presse that the Canadiens are for sale and that owner George Gillett Jr. is facing a cash crunch, it all fell into place.

It’s now obvious that the turbulence that kept bubbling up with this team was not coming from below. It was not the fault of Alex Kovalev, Carey Price or even the Kostitsyn brothers and their second-rate gangster friend.

It had nothing to do with Carbonneau’s alleged inability to communicate and everything to do with the charming, cherubic, owner who has been taken, naively, as a benevolent Santa Claus who thinks only of his hockey team and its fans.

Think of a shark in a Santa Claus outfit and you are probably closer to the real Mr. Gillett — because this is a team imploding from the top down, a team whose troubles are tied directly to an over-extended owner and his reeling business empire.

There is nothing that can destabilize a team quite like carrying nearly a dozen free agents, at least some of whom will definitely be playing elsewhere next year. Nothing tells your players you have given up like the failure to come up with significant help for the playoff run.

 

 

And nothing undercuts your team like having the news that the club is on the block break just as you are hanging onto a playoff spot by your fingernails.

Remember what Carbonneau said at his post-firing press conference? “It will all become clear with time.”

It is becoming clear more quickly than Carbonneau estimated. First of all, an independent source who is in a position to know told me quite definitely last week that the Canadiens are for sale, despite Gillett’s denial.

It makes sense, the Canadiens are worth money to Gillett. Big money. Probably double Gillett’s initial investment, which landed him a sweetheart deal — a hockey team and its new building for half of what the team alone is now worth.

Perhaps some day former Molson boss Dan O’Neill would be so kind as to explain that preposterous buy-one, get-one-free sale. Meanwhile, the highly leveraged Gillett needs cash. Desperately.

You don’t suddenly put bankers in four different countries valuating your entire, far-flung holdings because you are doing a little estate planning. The unfailingly amiable Gillett got huffy when he pushed that fib to reporters last week, a sure sign that the man is blowing smoke.

Gillett’s specialty is the financial high-wire act, walking a tightrope over a river full of hungry crocodiles while juggling a half dozen plates with his head, shoulders, knees and toes.

 

 

He borrows from Peter to pay Paul, dives into highly leveraged acquisitions and usually (but not always) manages to keep the crocodiles from getting their fangs into his butt. Once before, prior to Gillett’s acquisition of the Canadiens, it has all come crashing down — to the tune of an $800 million US bankruptcy.

You or I have an $80,000 bankruptcy and we’re ruined for life. Gillett goes down for $800 million and it’s just the start of something big. Gillett bounced back from that one, still wheeling and dealing. He sailed into Montreal, bought the Canadiens and has generally been a good owner since.

But there have been all kinds of warning signs this winter that the Gillett empire was in trouble. In December, the Globe and Mail reported that according to a lien filed in Delaware, Gillett had taken out a high-interest personal loan for $75 million US from an American private investment fund — and put up his highly leveraged share of the Liverpool soccer team as collateral.

The real problem is the debt that Gillett and his partner, Dallas Stars owner Tom Hicks, owe on the Liverpool club: $620 million Cdn due for refinancing in July, with the collapsing Royal Bank of Scotland and the troubled Wachovia Bank in the U.S. unable to cut the Americans any more slack.

 

 

Gillett needs cash and he needs it quickly. According to a report in the London Daily Mail on Sunday, Gillett needs to liquidate $440 million Cdn in assets in order to stay afloat with Liverpool. If he can’t pay up, there’s no way the Royal Bank of Scotland can give him an extension.

The Scottish bank has been partly nationalized now by the British government, there are stringent new credit regulations, and it’s unlikely that a couple of high-profile and high-flying Americans who have already occasioned much resentment in England are going to qualify for a sweetheart credit extension under these circumstances.

On balance, Gillett has been a good owner for the Canadiens. He and team president Pierre Boivin have shown that it is possible through intensive marketing to wring a whole lot of money out of the brand. They have done a good job with game production and, in general, with the hockey product.

 

 

Ironically, however, Gillett’s acquisition of a share in Liverpool may bring down the entire house. At the very least, his troubles have undermined this 100th anniversary season, despite all the hype generated by the Gillett publicity factory.

When the history of this season is written, they will chalk up the failures not to the Artist or the kid goalie — but to the owner, the man who told us that his Liverpool purchase could never affect the Canadiens.

Right.

[Durango]

Hicks has said pretty consistently to anyone that will listen that he's looking for additional investment. He's not selling up.

He with Gillett told us they would have spades in he grouund within 60 days as well.

 

I never come across 2 bigger Liars in all my fuckin life,and you still get soft Cunts on here believing them!

 

Hicks is saying he's staying because no one will give him the stupid asking price,he and his little twat mate will be lucky to break even!!

[Durango]

They will re-finance the club and have no problems doing so. They will also part sell some of their other assets to keep afloat. Let there be no mistake unlike the crazy bastard Moores, these two sure as hell know the value of Liverpool Football Club and won't sell for a penny less. If they can get the stadium done or up and running and get through the recesssion they could ask for nearly £1Bn for us such is our name and stature.

Sober up,Clown!!

[coop]

You mean everything is not right with the owners and they are really skint and Gillett is needing to sell assets asap or risk defaulting on his loan with RBS.

 

Well oil beef hooked.

[Chinandeler Bong]

Remember tho We shoudnt be talking about GG's financial affairs because its private .

[philyhamann]

I don't like this selling stakes in their franchises, or their entire franchise. Seems like they're trying to raise the money to hold onto us. I can not for the life of me understand how someone could reject a 50 million quid profit in 12 months.

[coop]

I don't like this selling stakes in their franchises, or their entire franchise. Seems like they're trying to raise the money to hold onto us. I can not for the life of me understand how someone could reject a 50 million quid profit in 12 months.

 

Greed, because they were confident of getting more but Dubai walked away.

 

Would i be right in thinking that if the owners fail to pay back the £350 million loan they have and therefore default on it does this then mean that the current owners would lose their guarantees as well.

[Chinandeler Bong]

Greed, because they were confident of getting more but Dubai walked away.

 

Would i be right in thinking that if the owners fail to pay back the £350 million loan they have and therefore default on it does this then mean that the current owners would lose their guarantees as well.

 

Im pretty sure they would tbh but I will double check that .

[coop]

Which would be a reason why Gillett is trying to raise the cash via 'investment strips to refinance otherwise lose the club and their guarantees.

[SpeedyG]

He with Gillett told us they would have spades in he grouund within 60 days as well.

 

I never come across 2 bigger Liars in all my fuckin life,and you still get soft Cunts on here believing them!

 

Hicks is saying he's staying because no one will give him the stupid asking price,he and his little twat mate will be lucky to break even!!

 

That's one way of looking at it. The other is that he's pretty sure he wring an extra 100m a year out of LFC and in the long term that's a pretty good pay back. If he can get the financing it's a no-brainer.

[SpeedyG]

I don't like this selling stakes in their franchises, or their entire franchise. Seems like they're trying to raise the money to hold onto us. I can not for the life of me understand how someone could reject a 50 million quid profit in 12 months.

 

50m now, or 250m in 5-7 years!

[Royal Family]

Alternatively, Gillett is trying to raise finance to prevent Hicks from buying him out - he may have nowhere else to turn come refinancing if Hicks can provide enough guarantees on his own or with a new partner.

[Chinandeler Bong]

Exactly Coop , GG is not in a good position right now financially , most know that anyway , he is trying to recapitalise his assetts which basically means he wants to revalue them and protect them against hostile takeovers as far as im aware.

 

He knows that possible intersted investors who have enquired into the club will now wait until they are in a now win situation if RBS refuse the refinancing and use that to their advantage . . .

 

Hicks kas a couple of companies working on his behalf looking for Purchasers or Investments into LFC , but he knows If he can hang on for that stadium he will reap the rewards big time , but he will borrow yet again to build the stadium , he admitted that himself in his last PR Campaign on SSN and LFCTV when Rafa signed his deal .

He's waiting for the markets to settle , could be in for a very long wait if you ask me.

And remember also small business' are the countries lifeblood not big football clubs and ive heard of a few of the smaller companies being taken into Administration by RBS lately . . .

 

Id be very surprised if RBS do agree refinance without a massive injection of cash from the yanks , infact id go as far as saying that just wont happen .

 

They have left it too late if you ask me and Im expecting alot of movement on the ownership front come May / June this year .

[Durango]

Alternatively, Gillett is trying to raise finance to prevent Hicks from buying him out - he may have nowhere else to turn come refinancing if Hicks can provide enough guarantees on his own or with a new partner.

Didn't Gillett have his half done to D.I.C. months ago.

 

The silly Cunts won't accept that they won't get a better offer than D.I.C.,since the rejected the Arabs the price as DROPPED and will fall further!

[Lupin]

Didn't Gillett have his half done to D.I.C. months ago.

 

The silly Cunts won't accept that they won't get a better offer than D.I.C.,since the rejected the Arabs the price as DROPPED and will fall further!

 

Yes he did - be interesting to see if anything further develops along those lines as the crunch time approaches. Certainly, they don't have a cat in hell's chance of getting anything like the money they could have got a year ago when Gillett agreed to sell his 50% to DIC. You can bet that all interested parties will be having quiet words in the ear of RSB/Wachovia about the state of play and how they can wipe out their 'toxic' debt. According to the current head of RSB - (Observer Business 1/3/09) prompted no doubt by the shitstorm generated by their own stupidity in many areas of late and the mauling recieved by the Treasury Select Committee, their books have been overexposed to restructure dependent LBO's in recent years and decisive action will be taken on these matters to increase the bank's deposited holdings and massively reduce risk in this area.

[Lupin]

Hicks has said pretty consistently to anyone that will listen that he's looking for additional investment. He's not selling up.

 

...and yet he came within minutes of selling up to the Kuwaitis before they pulled out. He just wants top dollar.

[Medazza]

...and yet he came within minutes of selling up to the Kuwaitis before they pulled out. He just wants top dollar.

 

exactly - both will sell if they can, they are worried at the moment that nobody will buy and their bluff will be called.

 

The recent Gillette "i'm staying" interview with the echo was given solely on the basis they printed exactly what GG wanted them to, or they wouldn't speak to them:telloff:

[Little Sammy]

So what is the exact date of the deadline?

[Paul]

These cunts will do everything in their power to stay involved with us for the very simple reason that they got us for an absolute steal - and that's even before you consider the fact that they actually didn't invest anything to do so. I said at the time and still say now that we are dramatically undervalued relative to our potential.

 

We are one of the top four names in world football along with The Mancs, Barca and Madrid which in itself is priceless as there's a world-wide fan base to exploit. Unlike other big names however, we have a history and tradition of success that makes that brand infinitely better established -and therefore more lucrative - than nouveau upstarts like Chelsea who, in the short term, are doing better at exploiting their potential than we are. We also have a huge, untapped demand for tickets at home, making a new stadium a potential cash cow and are the closest we've been in twenty years to putting the bread and butter trophy, which would state that we were unequivocally back among the big boys, back on the table.

 

I reckon a medium to long term owner could make serious money even with as much as a £1bn investment in the club. A new stadium and a handful of new players would bring future revenues pouring in like almost nowhere else. We definitely have the potential to be the biggest club in the world financially speaking, and the cunts who own us know that - as their scramble to realise other assets shows. Let's just hope that they're forced out and we get someone more palatable in in their place. I tell you what though, if I was in their shoes, I'd fight tooth and nail to stay involved.